The Lord of the Heart

John Hislop of Los Angeles, who was very devoted to Sri Sathya Sai Baba, addressed an audience in Bombay on January 1, 1971. In the presence of Swami, he narrated his first meeting with Bhagavan.

When Baba sent word that I was to make some remarks at this great New Year’s gathering of Sathya Sai devotees, the thought occurred to me that if I were to speak with all the truth I could muster, there was only one topic on which I could speak. That topic is personal, not general, in its reference.

My theme will be this: What does Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba mean to me? What does He mean to this mind and body, educated and cultured in a foreign country? What does He mean to that subtler aspect of myself that is without nationality?

My wife and I first heard of Swamiji in 1968 through a description of Him given to a friend of mine by a woman who had visited Prasanthi Nilayam. The woman had brought back some sacred vibhuti and a beautiful ring, a gift to her from the miraculous nature of Baba. She had many fascinating stories to tell. But one special remark struck fire to my mind and imagination. She said that she had felt a change in her character while at Prasanthi Nilayam. The change persisted even after she returned home.
Her statement struck my mind with the impact of a great storm. Could there be such a man living today whose art was so subtle, so powerful, so mysterious and so divine that he could change the human heart?

If it were indeed true that such a man lived in today’s world, then nothing else in my life could equal the urgency of seeking Him out, prostrating myself at His feet, and praying that through His grace He would be so kind as to cultivate my dry heart with His Divine Power so that my heart might open into fresh life, as the dry fields become alive and vibrant with the spring rain.

My wife and I heard the story of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba on a Monday. That same week we boarded a plane to India.
I should not imply that my faith was able to keep up with the eager rush of my heart to the Lord. After all, my mind was educated in the cold, scientific methodology of a western university and cultured in the profit-climate of the business world. Moreover, I had had disappointing experiences with various spiritual preceptors.

Nonetheless, my intellectual doubts—which had gained considerable strength during the journey—were unable to survive even the first meeting with Swamiji. How can doubt maintain itself in His divine presence? In His presence, doubt is like very shallow water in the burning sun. In no time at all, it disappeared.

As we sat before Swamiji at Prasanthi Nilayam, in the room reserved for meetings with inquirers, we soon realized that the elegant and charming Indian gentleman speaking with us was unmistakably something far more than that. We listened to His sweet voice, felt the warmth of His loving smile, noted the impression of irresistible power conveyed by the cast of His features, looked as deeply as we dared into His eyes—now soft, now flashing. But, beneath these surface impressions, our awareness was deepening. We became conscious that a state of love and affection existed in the room. In my heart arose a movement, a new feeling and a joy so intense that tears came to my eyes.

For me, Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba is, first of all, the Lord of the heart. He is able to remove quickly all the hardness accumulated in the years and make the heart fresh again, new again, joyful again.

The next aspect of Baba that strikes me with real force is the overwhelming and incomprehensible mystery of His Divinity. He appears to be a man, but even a dullard can see that Baba is not a man. One looks at Him and sees the blue, perfect calm of the deep sky. One tries to define His form, but can see only space. The one thing certain about Him is that He loves us—otherwise, to predict Him or define Him is like trying to capture the wind or the silver of the moonlight.

Even the stories we read of the avatar are just futile attempts to define Swamiji. It is said that the Supreme and Only Being wills to take form as an object within that world of maya (illusion) created by Him, and that there He plays a human role without in any way compromising His total subjectivity.

Out of such words, reason may satisfy itself, constructing some framework of meaning. But the meaning can be only relative, whereas Baba is not relative. So, if we are honest about it, we end up where we started—facing a divine mystery that is incomprehensible.

The third aspect of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba that has a tremendous importance for me is Baba as the supreme teacher of men. He guides us to liberation—to reunion with Him.

Each word He speaks carries a lesson intended for our benefit. Baba repeats certain basic principles again and again. Perhaps these principles could be summarized into seven cardinal points:

1. Be happy. Bliss is God’s nature expressed in the individual. Happiness is our social duty. Simple happiness rooted in good becomes value to everyone around us.
2. Always feel that you are divine. There is only One; we are not different from that One.
3. Let thought, word, and action flow from the Divine that is one’s essential nature. How happy we feel when we engage in noble action, how miserable when our action is petty or hateful.
4. Behave toward others with the same kindness that we direct toward ourselves, because at some subtle level of our being, I am you and you are me. We are not two opposing forces.
5. Awake with love, fill the day with love and end the day with love. It is not that we should simply feel love. In truth, we are love. As humans, we are just appearance. In truth, each one of us is a flame of love dancing in ecstasy against the background of the Lord’s maya.
6. Love God with all your heart. Trust Him completely. Abandon your will and your life to Him. He is the only refuge. Even though pain and death be our lot, only in God may we find refuge.
7. Let the mind always be alert to penetrate appearance and uncover reality. Let the mind never be caught up in appearance, but let it be engaged in ceaseless inquiry: Who am I? What is my real nature? Where do I come from? Where am I going? Where and what is my home?

This summary of the seven cardinal points of Swamiji’s teachings is just as it appears to my mind, which is severely limited. Today, we have the great joy of being able to hear the truth from the unlimited, from the Lord Himself, from our beloved Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba.

Source: Sanathana Sarathi, February, 1971